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From a start in Smokefree Rockquest to winning Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Aotearoa Music Awards, Georgia Lines is certainly one to watch. Fresh off a headline tour around the country supporting her EP ‘Human’, she sat down with Ash Wallace to reflect on her career so far. 

It wasn’t until she sang at an intermediate school talent show where Georgia Lines discovered she could sing. She quickly picked up guitar, and started writing songs – busking and playing little café shows in Mt Maunganui where she grew up. She entered high school competition Smoke Free Rockquest for 2 years to no avail, until her last year of high school where she took out the whole competition. “After winning Smoke Free Rockquest back in 2014, it gave me the confidence to pursue music as a career.”

After finishing school she pursued her song writing and tried to find her own place in the industry. Without any clear paths to look to, she had to carve out her own direction and felt at a loss for some time trying to figure it out. “I didn’t actually know what it looked like to pursue a career in the industry. I would talk about it but It took me a while to figure out what my own sense of being an artist was.” That path led her to recording her first EP on a crowd funded trip to Houston, where she scrapped all the songs she intended to work on and started fresh on day 2 in the studio – a real turning point for her confidence and voice as an artist. “I realised I can’t wait for anyone else to tell me who I am as an artist- I have to figure it out myself”.

Throughout her career Georgia has been heavily invested in the production and sonic choices of her project, working with trusted producers to collaborate on her tracks. Inspired by the paths of female artists like Kimbra, Solange, and Yebba, she has developed a nuanced production style and taste. Drawing influence from the 80s and 90s in her choice of drums, stacked harmonies, and synths, her latest EP ‘Human’ is a tasteful nod to the classics, while maintaining her unique flavour. 

Any audience member lucky enough to attend a Georgia Lines show will know you don’t often leave empty handed. Georgia has a talent for curating a space that feels welcoming, energized, and magical – to make a room full of people feel connected to one another throughout her show. Often that comes from her unique crowd interaction, and expectation of her audience to participate; be that through glow sticks, twinkle lights in the crowd, or learning the words to her new songs on the spot. Georgia describes her approach as “closing the gap between the artist and the audience”, with that connection being particularly important after being away from live music through Covid. “A show can be perfect musically, but visually how something is pieced together or the moments you create in a show are just as important. I want people to feel bought into my world and the atmosphere I create – I want them to feel like they’re part of something”. If her headline tour across NZ is anything to go by, fans are flooding to her shows to feel exactly that.